Unexpected Blizzard
by Mr.GrayHoody
Summary: How will the relationship of two blonde shinobi change after being stuck together for a few days in a freak snow storm?


****Warning: For those of you who find this story familiar, that's because it's almost exactly the same as an older story (with some minor fixes) that was under the same name. Originally, this was written by the author 'MystiiriousAbnormality' (which was my old account). I have an explanation on my old account's profile page as to why I'm moving the story to this account, for those of you who care.****

 ** **I do not own Naruto.****

* * *

 ** **Unexpected Blizzard****

Here they are, two shinobi from Konoha stuck in a cave due to the intense blizzard currently going on outside. It had been clear all day, then, out of the blue the storm came, along with a rather overpowering cold. Ino only spotted the cave out of the corner of her eye, and quickly yelled for Naruto to follow her. Unfortunately, there was no way they'd be able to find their way through the falling snow. If she hadn't found it, they would have both most likely frozen to death from the intense cold.

"Well…thanks for spotting this…" Naruto said, walking further into the cave and sitting against one of the walls.

"Yeah….whatever…" she scoffed, sitting on the opposite side of him. Naruto crossed his arms and aimlessly stared out of the cave into the wall of falling white flakes. Ino followed his gaze for a moment before curling up for warmth, the cave was getting colder and colder the longer they sat.

…

….

...

Roughly three hours earlier, Kakashi and Asuma's teams were sent to a village bordering the land of fire and, unfortunately, it was winter. To their relief, it was unseasonably warm for this time of year.

The two teams were to locate a missing-nin, and a very dangerous one at that. Sakura was paired with Shikamaru, which neither one of them were too happy about. Kakashi and Asuma both went by themselves. Chouji and Sai were in a group, and Ino and Naruto were paired together. Ino was furious at first, and Naruto seemed to be a little irritated at the pairing.

They had all split up in search of the missing-nin. What Ino and Naruto didn't realize is that they were supposed to head back fifteen minutes ago. Within a few minutes, a storm came upon them out of nowhere, pounding them with a heavy snow along with an almost unbearable cold. The two hadn't talked at all from the village up until Ino yelled for Naruto to follow her.

…

….

...

Ino now found herself looking back at Naruto, she knew that she didn't like him; she couldn't see why Shikamaru, Choji, Sai, or Sakura were his friends. Then again, she didn't know anything about him, except that he was an only child. She also knew that in the academy he was a failure that almost everyone picked on. She really didn't know anything.

Now, however, he had a handful of good friends and people had begun to respect him. Since he came back from training with Jiraiya more than a year ago, she had to admit that he had matured a bit. He was also taller and had become more muscular; you could tell just looking at him, even if he had his jacket on. She looked at his face; he had gotten pretty handsome too. Thinking this, she shook her head and turned back to the snow.

Ino started to shiver; the cold beginning to take its toll. Naruto had noticed and got up. She watched as he walked over to her and placed his jacket around her, the warmth of his body being transferred to her by this jacket, causing her to stop shivering almost immediately. She looked at him in utter confusion as he walked to the entrance of the cave. 'Why would he do that?' she wondered to herself.

"Where are you going?" she asked in a yell.

"To find some wood…we need to get a fire started," he replied with no real emotion.

"It's freezing, and with the blizzard you might not be able to find your way back."

"Would you really care if I didn't come back?" he asked her as he finally left the cave. These last words made her eyes widen and lips part. Why would he say that, did he really think that she hated him that much? She was shocked that he would ever say something like that. Beginning to feel upset that he thought of her that way, she couldn't help but pout as the sound of his footsteps was overcome by the howling of the wind.

Almost an hour later Naruto still hadn't returned, and she was getting worried. Standing up, she walked towards the entrance of the cave, only being able to see about ten feet in front of her. 'Oh no…' she thought.

"Naruto!" She started yelling out, hoping that he would hear her.

She waited a minute and yelled again, "Naruto!"

"Yeah, yeah…I'm coming…" she heard. Then she saw him and a few clones carrying a good sized bundle of wood with them.

"Where have you been?" she questioned him in concern. Naruto only looked at her in confusion.

"I was getting fire wood like I said."

"Then why did it take you so long?" she questioned again, almost yelling at him as he dropped some wood and started to make the fire, having his clones make a separate pile.

"I got lost and heard your voice, so thanks….but why are you yelling?" he questioned her, still a bit confused.

She was shocked. He was lost and only found his way back because of her; he could have died!

"Well, don't do that again….Shikamaru and Sakura wouldn't get off my back if you died. Plus I was freezing, so hurry up and get the fire started," she said, turning away from him a bit.

"Yeah, whatever."

She turned to him in frustration, but didn't say anything. She just laid down next to the fire, having placed a blanket down to lay on. Naruto did the same, and after a few minutes the two were sound asleep.

…

….

...

The next morning, Ino woke up surprised to see that Naruto was already gone. But the blizzard hadn't let up at all; she began to feel panic overcome her. The platinum blonde rushed to the entrance of the cave.

"Naruto!" she yelled out, trying to find him.

"Ughh, why are you yelling?" Hearing this, she turned to the voice. Naruto was sitting on a small ledge a few feet to her left.

"What are you doing!?" she questioned with a furious tone.

"I saw a small river yesterday just over there, so I got us some fish. You can have some if you want," he told her, handing her a stick with a fire roasted fish on it. She looked at it and decided that the fish didn't look all that appetizing, but she needed to eat. Taking the stick form him, she sat down a few feet away.

"Thanks…" she said in a soft tone. Naruto didn't say anything and just continued to eat his meal.

Once they were done, they made their way back into the cave. Ino sat down next to the fire while Naruto walked further towards the bowels of the cave. She glanced over every once in a while to see him and a good amount of clones performing techniques. He seemed to always be training in his spare time, so she guessed something like their current situation was no exception.

She started to think of the days at the academy, how she always picked on him, made fun of him, scolded him for no real reason. She sighed and turned to the entrance of the cave, watching the snow fall.

She didn't know how long it had been, but she finally snapped out of her daze when Naruto walked into her view. He was breathing heavily, obviously exhausted, and walked to a point just inside the cave. Sitting against the wall, he closed his eyes. She continued to watch him as he napped, seeing his chest rise and fall with every breath.

It was a few hours later when he finally woke up. At the time, she had been lying near the fire pampering her hair. Naruto had made a clone and was playing some sort of card game. She was surprised, and a bit unhappy, that he hadn't even bothered to ask her if she wanted to join him. Sighing, she continued to fix her hair, wondering how much longer the storm would last. Deep down, though, a small part of her wished that it would never stop. The two still hadn't had any real conversation; she didn't think Naruto was like this, he usually always talked to people.

The rest of the day went by much the same. They didn't really talk much, and they kept their distance from one another. Throughout the day, she kept asking herself why he disliked her so much. However, when the time came to sleep again, she put her blanket a bit closer to his than the previous night. He noticed, but simply turned from her and was soon fast asleep.

…

….

...

The next morning, Naruto was sitting up, looking at the fire while eating one of his rations. He looked over at Ino when she started to grumble while waking up. Placing one of the rations next to her groggy form, he turned back to the fire without saying a word. She glanced at him for a second before turning her attention to the ration, picking it up, sighing, and opening it.

"It's not that bad," she heard him say, surprised that he actually said something.

"It's not that. I shouldn't be eating stuff like this since I'm on a diet," she mumbled, watching as he turned to her. He looked her over with furrowed brows, then turned back to the fire, a confused look on his face.

"If you say so…"

"What's that supposed to mean!" she questioned, getting offended. Naruto only looked at her for a second before turning back again.

"Never mind."

Ino just glared at him, furious at his statement, but decided it wouldn't be worth it to fight about it in a situation like this. She just huffed and walked towards the entrance of the cave to eat. Naruto was surprised by her reaction, but didn't want to bother her about it, so he kept to himself. One of his clones had gone out to get some more firewood, and another to find some more fish for later on. Once both of them got back, Naruto released them and put some more wood on the fire. Ino had walked over and took a seat a few feet away from him. Naruto didn't look at her, keeping his attention on the flickering flame at his front.

"Naruto…why do you hate me so much?" she asked. He could see that her face had saddened quite a bit.

"Why would you care how I feel about you?" he asked with a rather emotionless tone. Frowning, Ino looked to the fire with a more downcast look. 'So he does hate me…'

"I don't know…" she mumbled.

"Well….I don't hate you, not even close." At those words, she looked at him, seeing an expression on his face that she couldn't quite place. "But with the way you always treat me, I assumed you hated me, so I pretended to act the same way. Now that I think about it, it's pretty stupid," he started to chuckle.

"Why would I hate you?"

He looked at her in confusion, "Ugh…well, you never talk to me, you always try and ignore me at the village and on missions as much as possible. Plus I always catch you glaring at me whenever we cross paths. Um…I actually can't think of anything else," he replied, scratching his head.

"Oh…" she whispered just loud enough for him to hear, looking down at her lap. 'I don't hate him. Not by a long shot...'

He started to chuckle again, "Sakura told me one time that during the Chunin Exams, you said that I was cute…I started laughing so hard I couldn't stop."

"I did say that…" she said softly, and turned away from him.

Naruto immediately stopped laughing; "Oh…"

"I guess I don't talk to you because I don't know you…and believe it or not…I'm actually shy when it comes to meeting new people. Not that you're a stranger or anything. I just don't know you very well," the blonde girl stated, looking at him again. Her eyes widened a bit when she noticed that he was looking at her also, causing her to avert her gaze.

"Ah…I never talked to you because I thought you would try to kill me if I did," he laughed again, making her smile at his silly remark.

"I even asked your boyfriend why you hated me so much, but he didn't have an answer,"

"BOYFRIEND!?" she yelled out. Naruto looked up to her in surprise. "Whose my boyfriend?" she asked angrily.

"Isn't it…Shikamaru?" He asked in a bit of a timid tone. After a few seconds, she just started to laugh at the thought of her and Shikamaru being together.

"No, no, no. Why would you say that?" she asked, finding it hard to control her laughter.

"Well…you always hang out and laugh with each other. It just seems like you two are a couple," he explained.

"Phfft….the same could be said for you and Sakura, but you two aren't going out…are you?" she asked, the last part coming out just a bit quieter.

"Huh!?" he blurted out once he realized what he had been asked. "I haven't liked Sakura like that for a while. I realized that it was just a stupid crush…" he said, smiling. Although, she could see a very slight sadness on his face.

"Yeah, same goes for me and Sasuke. It was just some dumb schoolyard crush…" they laughed together for awhile.

Their conversation ended there as the two looked at the fire, now feeling a little bit more comfortable being around one another. Ino caught Naruto looking over at her every now and then out of the corner of her eye. Every time he would look away, a smile crept up on her face. Naruto had once again decided to play cards with a clone, making Ino sigh when he didn't bother to ask her to play. A few hours passed and now it was getting darker again. The time for dinner and rest seemed to have come much faster that day.

After Naruto cooked the fish and the two ate, he went outside to relieve himself. Ino did the same after he came back inside. When she finally came back into the warm cave, she was shivering and noticed that Naruto was already fast asleep. She would have liked to talk to him for a while longer, but she wasn't about to wake him up for that. So she got under her blanket, laid on her little mat that they used to sleep, and closed her eyes.

…

….

...

Both of them got up at just about the same time, and Naruto had started eating one of his rations. Ino had also, although reluctant, taken out one of hers and began to eat. They didn't talk at all, and Naruto went off towards the back of the cave to train. She didn't see him again until around lunch time. Naruto walked to the fire, breathing heavily with sweat dripping down his face, and sat down to eat some fish.

At that moment, Ino remembered a question she had been wanting to ask him for a long time now. "So, why do you want to become Hokage so much?"

Naruto just looked at the ground for a minute, then sighed. "Well, it's just…I want people to recognize me; to realize that I'm not what is sealed inside me, that I'm a person. I've always been alone, ever since I can remember. I didn't even have any friends until I was teamed up with Sasuke. I hated it, I hated people criticizing me, hating me, despising me. The worst part was I didn't even know why people treated me like that back then. So if I became Hokage, then they would be forced to like me. Or at least not talk badly about me."

During his little speech, Ino had begun to stare at him intently. She had no idea how he felt. Then he continued, "I mean…it's not like I _wanted_ the Nine-tails to be a part of me. But, I wouldn't have it any other way at this point in my life. It makes me different. Unique. It makes me feel like I'm special in some way. And it doesn't control me, it's just there, and I can use it when I need to."

She frowned, "Naruto…I'm sorry for how people used to treat you. I'm sorry for how I used to treat you," she said, starting to tear up.

Naruto chuckled, "Don't worry about it Ino. In some ways it made me stronger I guess."

There was a long silence before she finally said something, "Naruto…could we start over?" she asked nervously.

"Huh?"

"Can we forget about our past, and start now, as friends?" she asked looking up to him with a sad expression.

"Sure…that would be great," he answered, gaining a large toothy grin.

She smiled at him and told him about how her and Sakura had become frienemies, and how now they were the very best of friends. She also told him about her family, and how she liked flowers, and how she loved working at the flower shop when she wasn't on missions. Naruto told her about his two years away from the village, and all the crazy adventures he went on with his perverted master. She liked listening to him; he calmed her down, almost made her feel happy during this depressing time in the chilly cave.

They had been talking and laughing for almost two hours now. "Naruto….just out of curiosity, have you ever had a girlfriend?"

He chuckled, "I think you know the answer to that, Ino."

She frowned, "Yeah…I guess I do. But, if it makes you feel any better, I've never had a boyfriend."

"Lies won't make me feel any better, Ino," he pouted teasingly.

"I'm not lying!" She said sternly.

"Really? That's hard to believe."

"And whys that?" she asked, getting mad.

"Well, you might be overbearing sometimes, and bossy, and mean on occasion," The blonde girl was now fuming, "But you can be nice and thoughtful sometimes, and you're pretty…" he said, blushing a bit.

At his last words she calmed down completely, and noticing his blush, she blushed herself, "You really think I'm pretty?" she asked softly.

"Of course…" he replied. She smiled and looked to the ground, her blush growing a few shades darker.

"Well, just so you know, the reason I always glared at you isn't because I didn't like you. It's because I thought you were cute, and didn't want you to see me just looking at you…" she said nervously.

Naruto chuckled again, "Well it worked…" She laughed with him for a minute.

"Why don't you ask Hinata out? She's liked you for awhile now."

"Really? Well, that wouldn't work out…"

"Why not?"

"Because…I like someone else," he revealed to her.

"And who would that be?" she asked, her curiosity growing by the second.

"I'm not entirely sure that's any of your business," he replied in a teasing tone.

Ino crossed her arms and huffed, "Fine, whatever."

"And what about you? Choji's had his eye on you for the longest time."

Ino shivered, "Yea, I realized. Let's just say…he's not my type, and, I've also liked someone else for awhile."

"I'm guessing that it's none of my business," he said with a smile.

"Yup." She grinned back at him.

A few minutes passed before Naruto yawned, "I wonder how long this storm will last…"

"Yeah…" Ino said in a sad tone. Naruto didn't notice, and only looked out towards the entrance.

"Let's hope not any time soon…I like getting to know you," he stated with a bright smile, saying the exact thoughts she was just having.

She looked at him wide eyed, but managed to smile. 'He likes being here with me?' she asked herself.

For the rest of the day, they talked about the past some more, told more stories and the such. Naruto had gone to get more fire wood and some food for dinner and for when they wake up the next morning. It was now getting dark, so they decided to go to sleep.

As she was lying under her blanket, she couldn't help but realize just how all of her friends had become Naruto's friends so easily. The two blondes had only really had one conversation, and they were immediately more comfortable around one another. A second conversation was all it took to open them up to a new friendship.

…

….

...

It was now the third day they were to spend in the cave and the blizzard hadn't let up one bit. Today, however, after breakfast Naruto had asked Ino if she wanted to play cards. She was more than happy to accept, being bored out of her mind and all. They played for a while, hours probably, and they told stories during the card game, making each other laugh every now and then. She was almost glad that the storm came, for if it hadn't, Naruto may have never become her friend. But the thing was, now that she started to get to know him a bit, something clicked, 'I really do…like him…' she thought, a smile making its way to her lips.

Naruto had never really talked to his fellow blonde that much, and to be honest, he didn't know anything about her. That is, until now, and he liked her personality. Not the one she puts up for people she doesn't know, or just walking around, but the personality she uses when it's just her, and a friend.

Ino smiled, "Just to let you know, the only reason I never talked to you was because I was afraid that you hated me."

"Well…now we both know why we wouldn't talk to each other," he chuckled. She just watched him with a warm smile, looking back to her hand of cards.

After the day seemed to fly by, it was once again time to sleep. The only problem was, it was much colder than it had been the previous nights. Not just a little cold; cold as in, your eyes would freeze over cold. So they both got as close to the fire as possible without getting too hot, but it still wasn't enough. At least not for Ino.

"Naruto, my back is freezing…" she whined.

"Well what do you want me to do about it?" he questioned her.

"I don't know…"

Naruto sighed and sat up; inching his way over to his pack and took out an extra blanket. He made his way to her back and gently put the extra blanket over her, causing the girl to gain a smile, "Thank you…" she said in a tone that made Naruto laugh.

"Yeah…no problem."

…

….

...

The next morning was no different from the others; it was almost dead quiet as they ate. They still weren't one-hundred percent comfortable being around one another, maybe because they were new to each other, or maybe there was a different reason. Today, Naruto didn't play cards; he just sat against the wall of the cave near the entrance and looked out to the falling snow.

"Hey…its calming down," he called over to her.

"Oh…that's good news," she said, letting a small smile grace her lips. She liked getting to know Naruto, but she hadn't showered in days, and it was making her feel like she was gross.

Just then, they heard a familiar voice, "Shikamaru, I found them…"

They both turned, "Sakura?" asked Naruto in surprise.

"Yeah! Me and Shikamaru were sent to find you since the storm died down, and one of Kakashi's dogs tracked you to this area," she said, walking into the cave.

Shikamaru entered and walked up beside her with a bored expression. "Well it took you long enough," Naruto teased.

"Yeah, yeah. Just be glad we came at all," she mumbled in a joking tone.

Naruto had gotten up and grabbed his stuff, put out the fire and walked to the entrance of the cave. Ino had also gotten her stuff ready and walked up to him. Sakura and Shikamaru were outside the cave, calling Kakashi's dog.

"You know Naruto…the real reason that I ignore you a lot is because…I like you," she whispered and blushed, jumping down next to Sakura. Naruto stood there in surprise, but smiled and jumped over to Shikamaru.

After they started making their way back to Kakashi and the others, Sakura had started talking to Ino, "So….how was it?" she asked.

"What?" Ino questioned in confusion.

"You spent almost four days with him! You must have hated every minute of it…I've seen how you look at him."

"Oh…well, at first we didn't talk and pretty much ignored each other. But, then we started talking about stuff, and now…we're friends," she smiled.

Sakura gasped, "Really…you can call yourself Naruto's friend? I thought you hated him."

"Well…he's easy to get along with. I can see why all of you became friends with him so easily."

"That's true; he is really easy to get along with."

"And since you're my friend, I should tell you…I never really hated him. I actually thought he was cute, and now…I like him," she admitted with a warm smile as she quickly looked back at the Nine-tails carrier, who was mumbling to Shikamaru.

"Wow…so Ino isn't as shallow as I thought," Sakura teased.

"Hey! Watch what you say around me forehead."

…

….

...

That same day they had all arrived back at their village and reported to Tsunade. Over the next few days, Naruto hadn't spoken to, or even seen Ino. So he decided to find her, starting at the most likely place, which she happened to be at.

He stood outside of the flower shop for a moment before taking a deep breath and entering. "Hi Naruto!" Ino said, happy to see her new friend.

"Where have you been hiding these past few days?" asked Naruto teasingly.

"Here and there."

He walked up to the counter, "I was wondering…um…would you…" Ino could tell he was really nervous at this point.

"Naruto…what is it?"

"Do you want to go…maybe get some lunch or something?" he asked, looking to the floor. Ino was surprised by his question, but smiled.

"Sure….how about the salad bar?" she asked, knowing he didn't like salad very much.

He sweat dropped, but put on the very best fake smile he could muster. "Yeah…that's sounds great."

She giggled at the obvious strain in his words. "Well then meet me there in an hour."

He grinned and turned around. "An hour it is." And he walked out of the flower shop, feeling relieved that she said yes. Ino herself was still smiling, starting to daydream about him, which she had been doing before he walked into her shop anyway.

…

….

...

The hour had passed and Naruto was waiting patiently at the salad bar. Ino was running late. There was a rush right when she was supposed to meet him, and her parents asked that she stay for a few more minutes. So just when Naruto was about to get up and leave, he was gently shoved back down into his seat.

"Just where do you think you're going?" he heard someone say in a teasing tone.

"Oh, Ino…" he said surprised.

"Yeah…sorry, but my parents made me stay to help out a bit longer," she murmered, frowning and taking her seat next to him.

"Don't worry about it."

They got their salads and began to eat. "I didn't think you liked salad," Ino stated.

"Well…I usually don't eat it, but I don't mind it," he replied, shrugging a bit. Though, on the inside, he was cringing at the moment.

"Oh…I eat it because of my diet." Naruto just chuckled and continued to eat. "What's so funny?" she asked, getting annoyed.

"Nothing…it's just, you always talk about a diet but you don't need to be on a diet. You can eat normally and still look amazing," he said, filling his mouth with food, surprised that he said that out loud. Ino was just looking at him. 'Amazing? He thinks I look-' she blushed and looked back at her food.

"Well I'm sticking with it…it's also healthier than eating all the meats and ramen you guys eat!" she replied in defense of her food choices.

"I guess that's true…"

"Ino…Naruto?" they heard a voice. Both of them turning around to see a dumbfounded Tenten.

"Oh, hey Tenten." Ino waved over to her.

Tenten walked towards them with a confused look about her, "Are you two…"

"No…we're just having lunch," replied Naruto, not turning to look at the other shinobi.

"Sure…" she replied.

"No, that's really all it is," reassured Ino.

"Whatever you say…" Then Tenten walked off.

Ino was looking back at her food, 'Just lunch…'

They were about to leave as well, but Ino grabbed Naruto's shoulder before he could walk off. "Hey Naruto, do you…maybe want to…I don't know, go to the theater or something tonight?" she asked nervously.

Naruto smirked, "Sure, sounds like fun," he said and continued walking down the street. "What time?"

"How's eight sound?"

"Awesome, I'll meet you there," he replied with a wave. She couldn't see, but he had the happiest smile on his face that he ever had. Ino was smiling also, just happy that he had agreed to spend more time with her.

…

….

...

For tonight, Ino got out of work early and went upstairs to her room. She took a nap so that she wouldn't be thinking about it for the rest of the day. Naruto had decided to do the same. He was nervous, but excited at the same time.

When the time came, both of them met up, picked out a movie together, and entered, finding some seats in the back. After a few minutes the movie started, and Ino slowly moved her hand to his, grabbing hold of it. Naruto gently squeezed it, causing Ino to look up, seeing a warm smile on his face. Almost halfway through the movie, she leaned her head on his shoulder.

That's as far as it went during the movie. She would be lying if she said she wasn't a bit disappointed, but also appreciated that he was willing to be patient. Naruto walked her back to her house, holding her hand. They talked about the movie and other movies they liked. They laughed now and then, waking a few people up, but they didn't care.

When they finally arrived at her house, she stood at the door facing him. He slowly leaned in, pausing only centimeters away. Ino closed her eyes while her heart started pounding at an insane speed, then she felt them; his lips on hers. After she had started to kiss him back and wrap her arms around his neck, he sucked on her upper lip for a while, before pulling away. He blushed and turned his head.

"Sorry Ino, I..."

Ino giggled, "Don't be…" she said as she opened the door and walked in. "I liked it." And with that, she closed the door. Naruto smiled, put his hands in his pockets, and walked down the street towards his apartment; a deep blush taking residence on his cheeks.

* * *

 **Although this is a re-post of my older story, reviews are still appreciated, good or bad.**

 **Even though it was my choice to transfer the story to my new account, it still saddens me to see my review turn to dust...**

 **Thanks for reading!**

 **-MGH**


End file.
